It’s been one ofthe big themes of the past year for committed and more casual fitnessenthusiasts alike: recurrent lockdowns forcing our favourite gyms and leisurecentres to repeatedly close their doors.
But now, many of usare asking ourselves a somewhat different question: with great numbers ofpeople returning to these environments, just how safe are they?
You might have more reason forreassurance than you think
It’s completelyunderstandable that even now, after significant numbers of us have beenvaccinated to at least some degree and become accustomed to many restrictionsin our lives to help lessen the risks, you may remain concerned aboutexercising in a gym with others.
After all, asProfessor Jonathan Ball – a University of Nottingham virologist – told BBCNewsbeat late last year, there are some factors in gyms that can bring acertain degree of coronavirus risk: “You do tend to exercise quite vigorously,that means that you can breathe rapidly and quite deeply.
“Therefore, we’dexpect that you could potentially produce droplets or aerosols that could go onto infect other people.”
Professor Balladded, however, that such measures as social distancing, hand sanitising,regular cleaning, and effective air conditioning could all help dramaticallylower the chances of catching COVID-19 in a gym or leisure centre.
He also observed:“From the data that I’ve seen from Public Health England (PHE), I’m not awarethat there is a significant hotspot for infections in the gymenvironment.”
What do the statistics say about theCOVID risk in gyms?
The BBC, in itsaforementioned report, referenced PHE surveillance figures that didn’t seem toplace gyms among particularly risky settings for coronavirus transmission,compared to the likes of supermarkets, pubs, bars and secondary schools.
This data didn’tnecessarily enable many hard conclusions to be drawn, however, especially as itdidn’t even account for whether those people documented in the statisticsactually caught the virus at the gym.
More instructive,perhaps, was the data released by not-for-profit industry association ukactiveearlier this year, indicating that COVID-19 was not greatly prevalent acrossthe country’s fitness facilities. The overall rate was a mere 1.7 cases per100,000 visits.
And between the endof July last year and the end of December, a total of just 1,277 coronaviruscases was recorded among gym users that visited facilities during the 23-weekperiod. This compared to 2.3 million coronavirus cases in total around the UK inthe same time bracket.
Don’t forget that you also haveanother option – online!
Adding to thecomplexity of the task of deciding whether you should be going to abrick-and-mortar exercise facility right now, is the rapid growth of the Deltavariant of the virus. In fact, it’s now the UK’s most dominant coronavirusvariant, and is estimated to have an around 60% higher risk of householdtransmission compared to the Alpha variant.
So, if you’re stilluncertain whether you want to head into a gym at the moment, we can understandthat. What it shouldn’t mean, though, is you neglecting your workout routine,especially given the considerable physical and mental health benefitspractising good exercise habits can have.
And as werecently covered on the Hybryd blog,those online classes we all became so accustomed to during the lockdowns havenot gone away. In fact, they may be a key part of the broader fitness scene fora while to come, giving you a socially distanced alternative to abrick-and-mortar gym.
Whatever the eventsof the coming months bring, then, you’ve got plenty of reason to still beshopping for gym clothes online to help get yourself ready for arenewed workout routine. Here at Hybryd,we’d be delighted to help, with our extensive range of high-quality, but alsogreat-priced, fitness apparel. And we’re continuing to offer free UK delivery on allorders!
Telephone
01637 876698
Email
contact@hybryd.fit
